Safety ladder

ABSTRACT

Attachments for the base portions of ladders which serve to laterally widen and forwardly extend the effective base of the ladder to give it stability on uneven or sloping supporting surfaces. Attachments are so designed as to transfer the major portion of the loading on the ladder to the attachments without placing shear stresses on the bolts or other devices securing the attachments to the rails of the ladder. Thus, repetitive use of the ladder will not cause the attaching devices to work loose since loading of such devices under tension rather than shear does not tend to cause progressive enlargement of the holes in the side rails through which such devices extend. Lower ends of side rails rest upon sloping shelves formed in the attachments while the front edge and one side surface of each rail is confined against rigid walls whereby loading of ladder tends to cause only a rocking of the attachments lengthwise of the attaching devices.

United Mates atent [72] Inventor Maurice A. Bourquin East Granby, Conn.

[21] Appl. No. 62,818

[22] Filed Aug. 11, 1970 [45] Patented Nov. 16, 1971 [73] Assignee TheM.A.B. Machine Corporation [54] SAFETY LADDER Primary E.taminer-ReinaldoP. Machado Attorney-James D. Bock ABSTRACT: Attachments for the baseportions of ladders which serve to laterally widen and forwardly extendthe effective base of the ladder to give it stability on uneven orsloping supporting surfaces. Attachments are so designed as to transferthe major portion of the loading on the ladder to the attachmentswithout placing shear stresses on the bolts or other devices securingthe attachments to the rails of the ladder. Thus, repetitive use of theladder will not cause the attaching devices to work loose since loadingof such devices under tension rather than shear does not tend to causeprogressive enlargement of the holes in the side rails through whichsuch devices extend. Lower ends of side rails rest upon sloping shelvesformed in the attachments while the front edge and one side surface ofeach rail is confined against rigid walls whereby loading of laddertends to cause only a rocking of the attachments lengthwise of theattaching devices.

PAIENTEUuuv 16 Ian SHEET 1 0F 2 Owl PATENTEDunv 18 M SHEET 2 [1F 2SAFETY LADDER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The prior art discloses manyladders constructed in such a manner or provided with attachments so asto afford a laterally and/or forwardly widened base for contact with theground or other supporting surface. These are intended to give theladder greater security upon uneven or sloping supporting surfaces andto permit the user to safely lean outwardly of the vertical center lineof the ladder. Thus as shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 843,989 and 1,134,491lateral braces are swiveled or hinged to the side rails of ladders insuch a manner as to afford additional footings therefor. In U.S. Pat.Nos. 808,124 and 2,354,904 lateral braces are rigidly attached to theside rails to afford a wider lateral base for the ladder. In U.S. Pat.Nos. 14,223 and 2,323,425 attachments are secured to the lowerextremities of the side rails of ladders to widen the bases thereof.However, all of these patented structures, particularly when the ladderis used on uneven or sloping supporting surfaces, place great stress inshear upon the horizontally extending attaching devices such as bolts,screws and the like which extend through the side rails of the ladders.While it may be expected that such attaching devices will be so selectedas not to fail in shear under such stresses a severe problem exists inthat the attaching devices will work loose under repetitive loading as aresult of enlarging of the holes due to local permanent compression ofthe wood through which the attaching devices extend. Such enlarging isprogressive and cannot be completely compensated for by tightening ofthe fastening devices.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention providesattachments made of rigid material such as cast or fabricated sheetmetal. The lower ends of the side rails of a ladder to which theattachments are to be adapted are cut off, as an incident to manufactureof a new ladder or deliberately in the event the attachments are to beadapted to an existing ladder. at a position just beneath the lowermoststep. Such cutoff is made at an angle sloping downwardly and forwardlyto match a downwardly and forwardly sloping shelf or pocket found in theattachments. The attachments are then secured to the side rails by boltsor the like extending through the attachments and the side rails inpositions above the shelf or pocket. The attachments include outwardlyflaring portions extending downwardly from the lowermost step of theladder whereby to widen and forwardly extend the effective base of theladder. Loads applied to the ladder are transferred to the shelves orpockets of the attachments and because of the flare ofthe lower portionsof the attachments they will tend to rock about or pull away from theshelves or pockets. However, at least some of the bolts positioned abovethe shelves will react in tension to prevent such rocking and to confinethe walls of the attachments tightly against the outer surfaces of theside rails. Thus relative movement between the attachments and the siderails is effectively prevented without placing sufficient stresses inshear upon the bolts to result in any progressive enlarging of the holesin the side rails through which the bolts extend.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front elevational view ofa ladder embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the ladder shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken along the line 3- 3 in FIG.2;

FIG. 4 is a generally vertical sectional view taken along the line 4-4in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the attachment which is secured to theleft-hand rail of the ladder shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a front elevational view of said attachment;

FIG. 7 is a left-hand elevation of said attachment;

FIG. 8 is a right-hand side elevational view of said attachment;

FIG. 9 is a rear elevational view of said attachment; and

FIG. 10 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 4 but showing a modifiedform of the present invention. Referring now to the drawings:

An illustrative embodiment of the present invention is shown adapted toa conventional four-legged wooden step ladder. It will be understoodthat the present invention may be adapted to straight or extensionladders or to step ladders of the three-legged type. Also, it may beadapted to ladders of these various types made of other conventionalmaterials such as steel or alloys of aluminum or magnesium whether thesame be of tubular, solid or channel construction, as will be more fullyexplained hereinbelow. The conventional wooden step ladder 10 shown inFlg. 1 includes a left-hand side rail 12 and a right-hand side rail 14between which are disposed the usual horizontal steps l6, 18, 20 and 22.Each of said steps may be provided, if so desired, with a reenforcing ortension rod 24 having a conventional screwhead at one end and a threadedportion at the opposite end to receive nuts 26.

At the top of the ladder 10 the side rails 12 and 14 are secured to aconventional head or platform 28 the latter being thus secured, forexample by metal brackets 30 and conventional screws or bolts 32.

Referring now to FIG. 2 the ladder 10 has hinged to the head 28 or tothe brackets 30, as may be desired, a pair of rear legs 34 and 36 (seeFIG. I). The rear legs 34 and 36 are connected by conventional crossmembers 38 which may be reenforced by tension rods 40 similar to therods 24 used in connection with the steps. The ladder 10 also may beprovided with the conventional over-centering'toggle straps 42 whichserve to hold the ladder in the position shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 andwhich may be swiveled upwardly to permit folding of the ladder. Theladder also may be provided with the conventional shelf 44 hinged at 46to be swung into operational position as shown in FIG. 2 or into afolded position, in well-known manner.

In the conventional wooden step ladder the side rails 12 and 14, thehead 28 and the rear legs 34 and 36 are made of wood as are the steps16-22, rear spacing members 38 and the several parts of the shelf 44.The grain of the wood runs lengthwise of the rails 12 and 14 and rearlegs 34 and 36. The present invention takes into account the fact thatshrinkage of the wood in the rails I2 and 14 will occur primarily acrossthe width thereof as viewed in FIG. 2, it being well known that woodshrinks very little lengthwise of the grain but frequently progressivelyshrinks across the grain during its normal service life.

While the present invention may be incorporated into an otherwiseconventional wooden or other step ladder by the manufacturer thereof itis an important aspect of the present invention that it may be easilyadapted to a conventional step ladder already owned by a user. To adaptan existing ladder to the present invention each of the side rails suchas 12 and 14 in FIGS. 1 and 2 are sawed off along a plane 48 which isinclined downwardly from the rear edge of the rail toward the front edgethereof as shown in FIG. 2. In the form of the invention shown in FIGS.2 and 4 the plane 48 is cut square with respect to the side surfaces ofthe rail as shown particularly in FIG. 4. In a modified version of theinvention as shown in FIG. 10 a rail 214 of a conventional ladder issawn along a plane 248 which is inclined as is the plane 48 but also isinclined downwardly from the outer side surface of rail 214 toward theinner side surface thereof for a purpose that will be explainedhereinbelow.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The attachments embodyingthe present invention are indicated generally by the reference numerals50 for the lefthand attachment and 52 for the right-hand attachment asviewed in FIG. 1. For purposes of illustration the attachments 50 and 52are shown as metal castings on which a minimum of machining operationsare required. However, it will be apparent that they may be fabricatedfrom several pieces of flat sheet metal welded or otherwise securedtogether or from metal sheets some of which have been bent into simpleshapes so as to reduce the amount of welding or other fasteningsrequired. In either event the attachments may be made from lightweightmetal or metal alloys, if preferred, although when they are to befabricated from sheet metal appropriate ferrous metals may be preferredbecause of low cost.

With particular reference to FIG. 4 which is a sectional view, lookingtowards the left in FIG. 2, of the attachment 52 it will be noted thatthe attachment 52 includes a check portion or plate 54 which is adaptedto be secured against the outer surface of the side rail 14 of ladderl0. The cheek portion 54 rises from a relatively thick leg portion 56having an upper surface 58 which constitutes a shelf upon which thelower surface 48 of the ladder side rail 14 is adapted to rest. Theattachment 52, as shown in FIG. 4, also is provided with a generallyvertically extending lip 60 (also see FIG. 3) which is adapted to fitfirmly against the front surface of the side rail 14 as will be moreclearly understood from the description below of the left-handattachment 50 which is shown in full detail in FIGS. 5 through 9.

Preferably also, the attachment 52 includes a stiffening web 62 whichextends from the upper end of cheek portion 54 to the lower end of legportion 56 (see FIGS. 1 and 2 as well as FIG. 4).

Referring particularly to FIGS. 2 and 4 a simple and preferred manner ofsecuring the attachment 52 to the righthand side rail 14 is shown. Thusthe cheek portion 54 has drilled or otherwise formed therein a pluralityof holes 64 to receive respectively a plurality of bolts 66, 68, 70 and72. Holes, not numbered, corresponding with the holes 64 are drilledthrough the side rail 14 in such position that, when the rail 14 issnugly fitted against the shelf 58 and lip 60, the bolts 66, 68, 70 and72 may be inserted through the rail 14 and each secured by a suitablenut 74. Washers of any suitable type (not shown) may be positionedbeneath the bolt head or nuts if so desired.

Many ladders, including conventional wooden step ladders have thereenforcing or tension rods 24 shown for example, in

FIGS. 2 and 4, and described above. To afford clearance for and accessto the screwheads of such rods and the nuts 26 threaded thereon arelatively large opening 76 may be formed in the cheek portion 54. Inthis manner the cheek portion 54 may extend above as well as below thelevel of the lowermost step l6 of the ladder thus affording wide spacingand good load distribution between the lowermost bolt 66 and theuppermost bolts 70, 72 which secure the attachment S2 to rail I4.

in FIGS. through 9 the left-hand attachment 50 is shown in various planand elevational views to afford solid line showing to the variousportions thereof. The attachment 50 is a mirror image of the attachment52 and parts thereof which have been described and identified byreference numerals in connection with the attachment 52 will be onlybriefly described and will be identified by the same reference numeralsplus the digit 1 in the hundreds place. In all of these Figures thecheek portion I54 of attachment 50 is shown in a vertical positionrather than in the two-dimensional slantwise position which it assumeswhen attached to a step ladder having rails which converge toward thetop. In other words the attachment 50 is shown in the position it wouldassume if the ladder 10, in FIG. 1, were to be tilted towards the leftto bring the left-hand rail 12 into a vertical position parallel, forexampIe with the broken line 78 in FIG. I.

Thus, in FIG. 5 a portion of the upper surface of the shelf I58 uponwhich the sawn-off lower end 48 of the rail 12 rests, is shown in fulllines. In FIG. 6 the front surfaces are shown in full lines as in FIG. Ibut in such scale that the thickness of leg portion 156 may be shown bydotted as well as full lines. Also, the relationship of the cheekportion 154 with the leg portion 156 and web portion I62 as theseportions merge beneath the shelf 158 is shown by dotted lines since suchportions are concealed by the web 162 in the position illustrated inFIG. 6.

In FIG. 7, which is a mirror image of FIG. 2 the scale permits theshowing by dotted lines of the manner in which the lower end 148 of therail 12 rests within the pocket afforded by the cheek portion I54, shelf158 and the lip 160. In FIG. 8 the pocket just mentioned is shown infull lines. In FIG. 9 a substantial portion of the inner surface of lip160 is shown in full lines.

The modification shown in FIG. 10 involves only the fact that the uppersurface of the shelf 258 is slanted downwardly and inwardly from theouter, or right hand, surface of the attachment 252 as viewed in saidFIG. 10. As noted above for use with an attachment as shown in this FIG.I0, the lower end of the rail 214 of the ladder with which theattachment is to be used is cut or sawn oh at a compound angle such asto fit snugly upon the inwardly inclined portion of the shelf 258 aswell as to fit the forward and downward decline thereof in accordancewith the showing in FIGS. 2 and 8.

From a consideration of FIGS. 1, 2 and 4 the reasons for the substantialimmunity of any of the attachments disclosed herein against workingloose and thus becoming unsafe or at least creating an impression ofunsafeness, will become understood. As viewed in FIG. I the attachments50 and 52 are splayed laterally to provide, in effect, a broadertransverse base for the ladder 10. Whether the side rails I2 and I4themselves are somewhat splayed as is shown in FIG. I and as iscustomary with step ladders at least, or the side rails were parallel asis sometimes the case, the splaying of the attachments 50 and 52 causesany vertical loading upon the ladder to tend to spread the lower ends ofthe attachments further apart. This effect is resisted by the relativerigidity of the side rails 12 and 14 of the attachments. However theserelatively rigid parts must be connected in such manner as not toconcentrate forces at points where crushing of wood parts or distortionof metal parts will cause loosening of the connections between the railsand the attachments.

The manner of connecting the attachments 50 and 52 to the rails 12 and14 meets these requirements in a simple and effective manner since thelower cutofi ends 48 of the rails rest upon the shelves (see shelf 58 inFIG. 4 for example) and the outer sides of the rails 12 and 14 aretightly secured against the cheek portions (see cheek portion 54 in FIG.4). Thus a load which tends to rock the leg 56 (FIG. 4) leftwardly frombeneath the end 48 of rail 14 is transferred by the cheek portion 54 tothe bolts 66, 68, 70 and 72 which react in tension and, in turn,transfer the load to the inner surface of rail 14 through the nuts 74.So long as the lower end 48 of rail 14 rests on shelf 58 there issubstantially no shear loading placed upon the bolts 66-72 andprogressive enlargement of the holes through which the bolts extend inrail 14 will not occur.

While the rail 14 may be expected to shrink, assuming that it is made ofwood, such shrinkage is confined almost entirely to the cross graindirections, that is the width and thickness of the rail. Shrinkage inthickness of rail 14 as viewed in FIG. 4 may result in slight looseningof the bolts and this will permit the lower end 48 to settle upon theshelf 58 in the event any lengthwise shrinkage of the wood has occurred.Occasional retightening of nuts 74 will fully compensate for shrinkageeven if the rails had been made of poorly seasoned wood. Thus it isassumed that the lower ends 48 will continue to firmly rest upon shelf58 and the pattern of load distribution will not change under repeatedloading and unloading of the ladder.

As viewed in FIG. 2 the attachments 50 and 52 also extend the base ofladder l0 forwardly and vertical loading on the ladder will tend to rockthe attachments in a clockwise direction as viewed in that Figure. Thistendency is resisted by the pressure of lip 60 against the front of rail14, for example, and the pressure of the lower end 14 thereof againstthe downwardly and forwardly inclined surface of shelf 58. The extensivelength of the lip 60 and the wedging action between the end 48 and shelf58 affords large bearing areas with little likelihood of concentrationof stresses on local points. The fastening devices such as bolts 66-72play little. if any, part in the transfer of loading between rail 14 andthe attachment 52. Shrinkage in width and thickness of a wooden rail 14may lead to slight loosening of the bolts 6672 as noted above, and maytend to cause some retraction of the front of rail 14 away from lip 60.However, this is self-compensating since the rail 14 will settle bysliding of the end 14 downwardly upon shelf 58 and occasionalretightening of the nuts 74 is all that may be required to restoredesired rigidity to the structure.

if so desired the holes 64 in the cheek portion 54 (see FIG. 4) whichreceive the bolts 66-72 may be made somewhat larger in diameter than thediameter of the bolts to permit initial adjustment and such readjustmentas possibly may be required after shrinkage of the rails 12 and 14 whenthe latter are made of wood.

The attachments 50 and 52 are so constructed that they may be applied toladders having rails of any width or thickness. Thus, the pocket made upof the upper surface 58 (or 158 in FIG. 8), the inner surface of lip 60(or lip 160 in Fig. 8) and the inner surface of cheek portion 54 (or lip154 in H0. 8) is open on three sides so that rails of greater or lesserwidth or thickness than the rails illustrated in the drawings can bereadily accommodated. This is also true in the modified form ofattachment shown at 252 in FIG. [0.

In the modification shown in FIG. the downwardly and outwardly inclinedlower end 248 of rail 214 bears against the correspondingly inclinedsurface 258 of the attachment. In this modification even greaterresistance is afforded against lateral spreading of the attachmentsunder load because of the wedging ofthe end 248 against the surface 258.

It is intended that the attachments of the present invention may be soldto ladder manufacturers or to individuals owning an existing ladder. Forthe latter type of purchaser the attachments with required nuts andbolts may be sold in kit form. ln that case it may be desirable tosupply with the kits suitable templates, such as printed paper sheets,with pressure-sensitive adhesive if so desired, so that the angle andposition of the line along which the rails are to be cut may be readilyand accurately determined. Also, such templates may have the centers anddiameters of the holes to be drilled accurately located and indicated.

The adaptability of this invention to metal ladders, step or straight,will be apparent. The side rails of metal ladders may be tubular,channel shaped or of special shaped but in any event the lower portionsthereof are cut at an angle to match the angles of the shelves 58 of theattachments. The check plate portions 54 may lie against a flat metalexterior surface of such metal side rails or may bear only upon theedges of flanges or other shapes which define the outer surfaces of theside rails.

ln the claims the word steps" is intended to include the flat steps usedin step ladders as well as the steps sometimes called rungs in astraight ladder.

The fastening devices are shown herein as conventional bolts 66-72 andnuts 74 and it will be understood that any sort of tension fasteners maybe used instead. For example rivets or so-called sheet metal screws orsheet metal bolt substitutes may be used.

What is claimed is:

l. A pair of attachments for enlarging the effective base of a ladderhaving two side rails and a plurality of steps secured to and extendingbetween said side rails, said ladder when positioned for normal usehaving each of said side rails generally vertically disposed and eachpresenting to the user front, rear, outside and inside surfaces andhaving said steps extending generally horizontally, and each of saidside rails terminating below the lowermost of said steps in a downwardlyand forwardly inclined lower surface. each of said attachments beingadapted to be attached to a side rail of said ladder and each having aleg portion which is splayed laterally outwardly with respect to theside rail to which it is to be attached, each of said attachments havinga supporting shelf downwardly and forwardly inclined to match thedownward and forward incline of the lower surface of the side rail towhich it is to be attached and upon which shelf said lower surface ofsaid side rail is adapted to rest, each of said attachments having acheek plate extending upwardly from said shelf and adapted to engage inface-to-face relation against the outside surface of the side rail towhich it is to be attached, each of said attachments having a lipextending substantially at right angles with respect to said cheek plateand extending upwardly from said shelf in such position as to engage inface-to-face relation with the front surface of the side rail to whichit is to be attached and fastening means of the tension type forsecuring each of said attachments to the side rail to which it is to beattached with each of said cheek plates in said face-to-face relationwith said side rail, with said lower surface of said side rail restingupon said shelf and with said front surface of said side rail in saidface-to-face relation with said lip.

2. A pair of attachments in accordance with claim 1 in which the legportion of each of said attachments also splayed forwardly with respectto the side rail to which said attachment is to be attached.

3. A pair of attachments in accordance with claim 1 in which each ofsaid attachments has the cheek plate and the lip thereof extendingupwardly from the shelf thereof for a distance sufficient to extendabove the lowermost step of the ladder to which said attachments are tobe attached.

4. A pair of attachments in accordance with claim 1 in which the shelfof each of said attachments is also inclined inwardly and downwardlywith respect to the side rail to which said attachment is to be attachedthus adapting each of said attachments to be attached to a side railhaving the lower surface thereof also inclined inwardly and downwardly.

5. In a ladder having two side rails and a plurality of steps secured toand extending between said side rails, said ladder when positioned fornormal use having each of said side rails generally vertically disposedand each presenting to the user front, rear outside and inside surfaceshaving said steps extending generally horizontally, each of said railsterminating below the lowermost of said steps in a downwardly andforwardly inclined lower surface, the improvement which comprises anattachment for each of said side rails each of said attachments having aleg portion which is splayed laterally outwardly with respect to theside rail with which it is associated, each of said attachments having asupporting shelf downwardly and forwardly inclined to match the downwardand forward incline of the lower surface of the associated side rail andupon which shelf said lower surface is adapted to rest, each of saidattachments having a cheek plate extending upwardly from said shelf andadapted to engage in face-to-face relation against the outside surfaceof the associated side rail, each of said attachments having a lipextending substantially at right angles with respect to said cheek plateand extending upwardly from said shelf in such position as to engage inface to-face relation with the front surface of the associated siderail, and fastening means of the tension type for securing each of saidattachments to its associated side rail with each of said cheek platesin said face-to-face relation with the associated side rail, with saidlower surface of the associated side rail resting upon said shelf andwith said front surface of the associated side rail engaged with saidlip.

6. A ladder in accordance with claim 5 in which said leg portion of eachof said attachments is also splayed forwardly with respect to said siderail.

7. A ladder in accordance with claim 5 in which said cheek plate andsaid lip of each of said attachments extends upwardly of said side railfor a substantial distance above said lowermost step.

8. A ladder in accordance with claim 5 in which said lower surface ofeach of said side rails is also inclined inwardly and downwardly, and inwhich said shelf of each of said attachments is also inclined inwardlyand downwardly to match the inward and downward incline of the lowersurface of the associated side rail.

UNITED 5? TBS PATENE? *i FicE fiER'iJQFICATE fifiRREQTMN Patent No3,620,332 f t d November'- 16, 1971 J! Inventdfls) Maun ce A. BourqudknIt is certified that error appears in the above-identifiefi patent andthat said Letters Patent are hereby correcteci as shown below:

decline shculd be --inc1ine- Col. 4, line 16 col. 4, line 31 before "of"insert -and-- Col. 5, line 42 "shaped" should be --shapes- E '1 *1. MQ...:a ii II mm CO1 .une amoraat .Llxmci v on-- Col. 6 ine 35 before"having" insert --anc'i-- Claim 5 5F sealed this 23rd day of May 3972.

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FL, FL 3'51 & HO r GOTT so s-Lzzeauiag Sfficer Commissioner 0'1" Patents

1. A pair of attachments for enlarging the effective base of a ladderhaving two side rails and a plurality of steps secured to and extendingbetween said side rails, said ladder when positioned for normal usehaving each of said side rails generally vertically disposed and eachpresenting to the user front, rear, outside and inside surfaces andhaving said steps extending generally horizontally, and each of saidside rails terminating below the lowermost of said steps in a downwardlyand forwardly inclined lower surface, each of said attachments beingadapted to be attached to a side rail of said ladder and each having aleg portion which is splayed laterally outwardly with respect to theside rail to which it is to be attached, each of said attachments havinga supporting shelf downwardly and forwardly inclined to match thedownward and forward incline of the lower surface of the side rail towhich it is to be attached and upon which shelf said lower surface ofsaid side rail is adapted to rest, each of said attachments having acheek plate extending upwardly from said shelf and adapted to engage infaceto-face relation against the outside surface of the side rail towhich it is to be attached, each of said attachments having a lipextending substantially at right angles with respect to said cheek plateand extending upwardly from said shelf in such position as to engage inface-to-face relation with the front surface of the side rail to whichit is to be attached and fastening means of the tension type forsecuring each of said attachments to the side rail to which it is to beattached with each of said cheek plates in said face-to-face relationwith said side rail, with said lower surface of said side rail restingupon said shelf and with said front surface of said side rail in saidface-to-face relation with said lip.
 2. A pair of attachments inaccordance with claim 1 in which the leg portion of each of saidattachments also splayed forwardly with respect to the side rail towhich said attachment is to be attached.
 3. A pair of attachments inaccordance with claim 1 in which each of said attachments has the cheekplate and the lip thereof extending upwardly from the shelf thereof fora distance sufficient to extend above the lowermost step of the ladderto which said attachments are to be attached.
 4. A pair of attachmentsin accordance with claim 1 in which the shelf of each of saidattachments is alsO inclined inwardly and downwardly with respect to theside rail to which said attachment is to be attached thus adapting eachof said attachments to be attached to a side rail having the lowersurface thereof also inclined inwardly and downwardly.
 5. In a ladderhaving two side rails and a plurality of steps secured to and extendingbetween said side rails, said ladder when positioned for normal usehaving each of said side rails generally vertically disposed and eachpresenting to the user front, rear outside and inside surfaces havingsaid steps extending generally horizontally, each of said railsterminating below the lowermost of said steps in a downwardly andforwardly inclined lower surface, the improvement which comprises anattachment for each of said side rails each of said attachments having aleg portion which is splayed laterally outwardly with respect to theside rail with which it is associated, each of said attachments having asupporting shelf downwardly and forwardly inclined to match the downwardand forward incline of the lower surface of the associated side rail andupon which shelf said lower surface is adapted to rest, each of saidattachments having a cheek plate extending upwardly from said shelf andadapted to engage in face-to-face relation against the outside surfaceof the associated side rail, each of said attachments having a lipextending substantially at right angles with respect to said cheek plateand extending upwardly from said shelf in such position as to engage inface-to-face relation with the front surface of the associated siderail, and fastening means of the tension type for securing each of saidattachments to its associated side rail with each of said cheek platesin said face-to-face relation with the associated side rail, with saidlower surface of the associated side rail resting upon said shelf andwith said front surface of the associated side rail engaged with saidlip.
 6. A ladder in accordance with claim 5 in which said leg portion ofeach of said attachments is also splayed forwardly with respect to saidside rail.
 7. A ladder in accordance with claim 5 in which said cheekplate and said lip of each of said attachments extends upwardly of saidside rail for a substantial distance above said lowermost step.
 8. Aladder in accordance with claim 5 in which said lower surface of each ofsaid side rails is also inclined inwardly and downwardly, and in whichsaid shelf of each of said attachments is also inclined inwardly anddownwardly to match the inward and downward incline of the lower surfaceof the associated side rail.